


In The Moonlight

by criscriscris



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Vampire, F/M, M/M, Multi, POV Multiple, Vampires, rintori - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-24
Updated: 2014-10-13
Packaged: 2018-02-14 13:27:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2193501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/criscriscris/pseuds/criscriscris
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vampires like you've never seen them before.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I untagged all other pairings other than #rintori bc they haven't appeared yet.   
> Maybe I'll retag them later as they come forth.

Vampires. Many believe they don’t exist. Hell, I didn't believe they existed until we were attacked.

Japan’s society of vampire hunters was lacking and the vampires who had migrated here were thriving for it. This led to many families being killed - or worse, being turned. For a long while, it looked like the bloodsuckers were winning; what they hadn't expected, though, was that turning so many people would work against them. These new vampires had stronger loyalties to the living, to their families. They turned against their creators and fought alongside the humans. 

The tide of this invisible war was turning. I was still young when my parents decided to get out of the business, if only for the sake of my brother and me. They decided to keep it a secret to protect us. But…

It didn't quite work out the way they wanted. 

Now, my brother and I fight side-by-side, hunting the leech who did this to our family. Our mother was weakened but was able to contact family who helped to train us, and our father… Well, let’s just say we’re doing this for him.

One more thing – My brother wasn't as lucky as I was. He didn't die like our father nor was his life spared like our mother’s. No, his fate was worse. He was turned into one of _them._

We never thought we’d get to see the day where we find that evil son of a bitch who destroyed our family. But then – we never thought we’d go on this journey, either.


	2. Sleep tight, Goodnight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's where the story really starts... Kinda.

I wasn’t the best student in the world. I wasn’t the best _anything,_ to be quite honest. I liked swimming and I liked science, but I didn’t love them. They were never my passions, just hobbies. I was an average guy. Just… average.

It was my first year in high school – Samezuka, a swimming powerhouse. The students were competitive and not just in swimming. I was shocked to find out how smart everyone reportedly was and double-shocked when I saw their swim team. I could see their eyes burning to be the best and, although I never showed that much interest in competitive swimming, I felt something bloom inside my chest.

I wanted to be good at something. I wanted to be good at swimming. No - I didn’t just want to be _good_ – I wanted to be the best! 

I joined the swim team, only to be disappointed when I saw how much I was lacking. Everything was so hard, especially trying to keep up with my studies and become the best swimmer. My friends – all three of them – told me to just keep trying, keep working. They said I could make it if I just wanted it enough, if I just worked hard enough.

So I didn’t quit. I kept at it. My captain, Sousuke Yamazaki, always told me I had one thing going for me – My stamina. But I wanted speed too! I wanted power!

That’s probably what led to sneaking out passed curfew to swim a couple of laps in the pool. No one was around, so I thought I could practice as much or as hard as I wanted without having to worry about anyone laughing at my average-ness. 

It wasn’t as dark as I thought it’d be, walking to the pool area. The full moon was shining brightly – it did reflect the rays of the sun much better than any other phase of the moon, as I learned in my astronomy class. It was still a little chilly out, but I didn’t mind the cool breeze ghosting passed my face. It felt nice, like I was being cocooned in the night’s embrace, keeping me safe from teachers, from monsters. 

I decided to whistle a little as I went, feeling happy. I didn’t have many friends here at Samezuka. My roommate had transferred out and no one had transferred in his place. My best friends all went to Iwatobi; I had grown up with Makoto, Nagisa, and Kou. Or, at least had known them in childhood and we had been casual friends for many years. It wasn’t until last year that we really started getting close; or as close as three strangers can get. 

At times I wished I hadn’t transferred here; I could have gotten into Iwatobi. It was an easier school to get into. But Samezuka held more promise, at least according to my parents. It was bittersweet being apart from my friends; they were only a short train ride away and I could see them on weekends when I wasn’t swimming. 

At last, I made it to where the pool was housed. My teachers always trusted me with their keys because I had volunteered many times to help clean or to run errands or really, anything they needed. So it would easy to get in. As I reached for the keys in my pocket, I noticed something strange.

The door was already opened. And not by any keys, either. The door knob was hanging strangely, as if someone wrenched it out of place to get in. I had never seen this happen before – Who had the strength to do that?

I reached passed the keys in my pocket and fished out my pepper spray. Whoever was in here would be strong and they would probably not be intimidated by some average first year. However, it was doubtful that they would be immune to pepper spray. 

Inching the door opened, I slid into the dark building. I could hear splashing from the pool. Did they break in to swim? How strange… There was plenty of expensive swimming equipment in there and yet these criminals chose to swim?

I held my breath as I crept around the corner; the pool lights were on, so if I got any closer they would see me. I had to be careful, who knows what these guys are thinking. The splashing got louder and I was able to make out voices.

“It has been a while since you swam, huh?” His voice was deep, joking but not mocking. It was almost soothing.

There was a reply; another deep voice, but much calmer and quieter than the first one. I couldn’t make out the words, but the other person laughed in reply. It sounded like a one-sided conversation to me.

“Okay, okay. Sure, I know I said we can’t swim in those. But they’re public! They have cameras! This one doesn’t, so we’ll be safe for a while. Just don’t make too much noise. Don’t wanna attract a security guard.”

Another response I couldn’t hear; It was frustrating not being able to hear what the second person was saying, but I didn’t want to risk getting closer. 

“Huh? No way. Okay, fine. I’ll get in too.” I heard footsteps coming towards where I was and I froze. Crap. I pressed myself as flat as I could to the wall, but then I heard another splash, as if the other person got into the pool too.

 _Now that they’re both in the pool, I can try taking a picture for security._ I pulled my phone out, holding it with my other hand. I felt like a hero, holding two weapons at once. I almost laughed at that thought, but decided to hold it in for another day – Maybe I’ll tell Nagisa about this tomorrow.

My head peeked out from the corner and I just about dropped the items in my hand from what I saw. They were beautiful – not just in appearance, but the way they moved in the pool. The dark-haired person moved fluidly, as if he was part of the water. He looked like he was in his natural habitat, as if he was made for swimming not being on land. 

The other person, though, was different. He swam like his life had depended on it. His strokes were fierce and strong and he moved fast. The water accepted him, but not the same way it accepted the other person. It accepted him more as a rival, something to compete against if he wanted to live. As he reached the end of the pool, he flipped his hair up, splattering water everywhere.

“How was that?” He laughed, looking at the other person floating in the water. “Eh, Haru! You weren’t even watching!”

“You’re so dramatic, Rin. Keep it quiet,” the other – Haru! – said. He dipped down into the water and swam to the Rin. He resurfaced right in front of him and said something quietly. I felt as if I was watching an intimate scene and blushed. 

_Just gotta take this picture and go._ I decided that me being there any longer would be dangerous, so I turned my camera on and held it out over the corner. I clicked the ‘capture’ button several times, since I couldn’t see and I wanted to get as many pictures as I could. When I counted 20 pictures, I hightailed it out of there, the echoes of splashing and laughter fading as I went out. 

It was late when I got back to my room. I lay in my bed – still the top bunk – and scrolled through the pictures on my phone. I didn’t see anything but blurry water. No figures, no outlines, nothing. I sighed and put my phone down; I guess taking pictures blindly wasn’t the smartest idea.

I slept fitfully; images of two people, Rin and Haru, floating in my dreams. They were laughing together, crying together, fighting together; They were beautiful and strong and I hated them for it. I was sure they were smart, too. But who could they be?

The next morning was cold and I realized I had forgotten to turn on my space heater. It was a good thing I wasn’t able to go swimming at night after all. I sat up and yawned. Time to get up, I guess.

I went through my classes like normal, feeling a little lost in the crowd. It was an average day. Before practice, I called Nagisa to see when they could hang out.

“Eh, well this weekend we’re all free. Of course, let’s make it more towards the afternoon. You know how much I like to sleep in!” Nagisa laughed into the phone.

“Right, of course, Nagisa-kun. That’s okay with me, too!” 

“Okay, Ai-chan! We’ll see you Saturday! Take care!”

“Oh! I forgot!” I remembered what I wanted to tell him as I neared the swimming house. “I felt like a superhero last night!”

Nagisa laughed, “What are you talking about Ai-chan?”

“Well, I decided to go out and swim last night, you know, as practice. But it looked like someone had broken into the pool. So I was like, super ready to pepper spray the shit out of them, but I also decided to take pictures of them! You know, just in case the security people needed them!” 

“You sound more like a detective than a superhero,” Nagisa said. I could hear someone speak in the background. “Oh, and Mako-chan says you shouldn’t be going out at night by yourself! He’s right! It’s dangerous!”

“I had my pepper spray, there was nothing to worry about,” I waved it off. 

“Still, there’s some seriously dangerous stuff out there, Ai-chan. Be more careful, okay!”

“Okay, okay!” I sighed, but smiled. “Anyway, I gotta get ready for practice! I’ll see you guys this weekend!”

“Yeah! Oh, and Gou-chan says hi!”

“Tell her I said the same! Bye now!” I hung up as I arrived at the pool house. But it was just as strange as it was last night, only this time…

The door looked fine.

“Weird…” 

Practice had me on edge; I was just expecting to see Rin and Haru pop out of the water. Nothing happened, though. I got yelled at for my form and praised for my endurance. It was the same as always and that calmed me down.

As I was getting ready to head back, I was stopped by my captain – Sousuke Yamazaki - in the locker room.

“Is everything okay, Nitori?” Sousuke looked down at me, he’s dark blue eyes clouded with worry.

“Ah, yeah! I know I was a little off today, Captain, but I promise tomorrow I’ll be better! I forgot to turn on my heater last night!” I smiled, hoping to look calm to get him off my butt. 

A moment of awkward, tense silence passed between us until he finally sighed and looked away. “Take care of yourself. We can’t afford to lose someone like you.”

“What?” 

“Good night,” He turned away, slamming his locker shut. “Get some rest.”

“Thank you, Captain! Have a good night!” I waved at his retreating back, feeling a lot happier. Everything seemed to be back to normal – Heck, even better than normal. Maybe yesterday was just a dream!

That’s what I was thinking as I walked to the pool that night. A little apprehensive, but I was sure the criminals wouldn’t dare to come back again. They were lucky enough not to get caught the first time around, but to risk it a second time? I took a deep breath and walked quickly to the pool house. If they were there, I would shout – call attention somehow to get them caught. They would most likely run off, not wanting to get arrested. And, sure, I’d get in trouble too, but it would be worth it if we could catch them.

The door was ajar, but not messed up like the night before. Seems as if they decided it’d be smarter just to pick the lock instead of crashing through it, I laughed. Or maybe it was someone else, like one of the swim team members coming for a late night practice like me. I took a breath, ready to scream if need be.

Making my way slowly through the pool house, I could feel the contents of my stomach turning over themselves, somersaulting as if they were in the Olympics. Why was I so nervous?

I peeked over the corner again, checking to see if there was anyone in the pool. A figure was gliding under the water – sleek, fast, and graceful. There wasn’t any sort of person like that in the swim club… Was there?

As I took a step forward, the person surfaced and I realize too late that this was dangerous. That the person who surfaced had to be some sort of illusion, some sort of phantom because there was no way they would be there. 

It was Rin. Rin – the beautiful man with that powerful swim stroke from last night. Rin – the trespasser who clearly wasn’t scared of anything if he dared to break in twice. Rin – the man with the beautiful red eyes that stared right into my very soul.

“Hey,” he spoke, still submerged in water. Droplets fell onto his bare shoulders from his red hair, dripping like diamonds onto his skin. 

“H…Hello,” I managed, keeping myself still. 

“What’s your name?” He stared at me, his lips twitching up into a smile.

“Nitori… Nitori Aiichirou.”

“I’m Rin.” He grinned up at me. “So, you going to come in today or just stand there and be creepy again?”

“What!?” I jumped, head reeling. He knew I was here yesterday? Oh, crap!

“You should think about turning the shutter noise off your phone next time, Nitori. It kinda gives you away, you know.”

Hearing my name on his lips gave me chills, an effect I didn’t really expect. “Sorry! I just thought you were some sort of criminal! Honest, I wasn’t trying to interrupt whatever you two were doing last night!”

Rin laughed – It was loud but not bad. It was nice to listen to, actually. “What did you think we were doing last night, exactly? We were just trying to swim, Nitori. Get your head out of the gutter, geez.”

“Gutter…?” It took me a second to realize what he meant by that. “Eh?! That’s not what I meant either, Rin-senpai! I meant like… If you were hanging out with a friend you wouldn’t want someone else interrupting – That’s what I meant!”

“Senpai?” Rin gave me a look I couldn’t quite read.

“Well…I’m just a first year, so…you would be my senpai, right?” 

“Something like that, yeah.” He grinned again. “So, you getting in?”

“Ah! Right! That’s why I was here! I wanted to get in some extra practice! Please don’t let me get in your way, senpai!” I smiled and started to take my clothes off. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I have my swimsuit underneath,” I explained, pulling my pants off to reveal it. “So I can be in and out of this pool house quickly. I don’t want to get in trouble.”

“Right…” Rin ducked his head back into the water, swimming towards the middle. He was so good at swimming. 

I took a breath and psyched myself up. Of course he was a better swimmer! I was just a first year after all! I’ll be that good only if I practice more!

I dove in and began to practice my stroke – the breast. I swam until I could feel my body protesting against me. I swam until I couldn’t feel the averageness of life suffocating me. I swam until I felt someone grab my arm.

“Nitori! Slow down! You’re gonna kill yourself swimming like that!” Rin’s voice filled my ears, drowning out the blood rushing to my head.

“Senpai!” I tried to yell back but got a mouthful of water instead. Rin dragged me to the edge of the pool and pulled me out of the water. He waited for me to catch my breath before he started asking questions.

“Why were you swimming like that? Don’t you know how dangerous that is? Why did you think that would be a good idea?” He breathed out heavily, rubbing the back of his head. 

“I… I just want to be good,” I said quietly, looking away from his intense eyes. 

“That’s not the way to be good. That’s the way to kill yourself.”

“You wouldn’t understand, Rin-senpai. You’re already really good. You’re amazing, incredible! You’re… flawless when you swim. What would you know about being average, being mediocre?” I lashed out at him, punching the tile next to me. “You wouldn’t understand!” I scrambled to stand up, feeling my body scream in pain from the exercise I just put it through. 

“Nitori…” Rin looked up at me, concern clear on his face. “Listen… I understand more than you know. You think I got this good just by diving in the water? No.” He stood up slowly. “If there’s only one thing you take away from our conversation tonight, from meeting me, I want it to be this: No amount of natural talent will ever trump hard work. It’s something I’ve lived by since I was…alive, really. Take it to heart.”

I stared up at him, rolling his words over on my tongue. “No amount of… Natural talent will ever trump… Hard work?”

Rin smiled, putting his hand on my shoulder. “Exactly.” His hand was cold, nothing unusual about that. We did just get out of the water. But my skin felt like it was fire compared to his. “Anyway, it’s getting late. You should go back to bed and I should get going, too. Don’t want to get you in trouble or anything; plus you have classes tomorrow, you gotta be well rested for that!” Rin laughed, stepping away in a hurry. “Let’s go Nitori. I’ll walk you back!”

“Okay!” I nodded, shocked by how quickly this all moved. 

\--

My legs were sore. My back was sore. My arms were sore. Even my eyelids were sore! I heard the chirping of my phone alarm next to my ear. Man, my ears were sore, too.

I moved to turn off my alarm, my muscles straining against me. The pain I was feeling definitely meant last night wasn’t a dream.

Last night wasn’t a dream.

I shot up, completely ignoring my alarm, my muscles, my rational thoughts. Rin wasn’t a dream! He had even walked me back after we both got dressed.

“Do you normally take midnight swims?” He asked, swinging my bag over his shoulder. 

“I can take my own bag, senpai!” I tried to jump to grab at it, but he easily dodged me. With a sigh, I walked next to him, “Ah, not normally. But my times aren’t even close to being good, so I have to practice a lot harder than everyone else to get better. I only started earlier this week and then… I met you, I guess.”

He hummed in reply, looking up at the sky. “I know you want more practice but you also need to rest. You can’t get better if you can’t even move. I think you’ve got something you don’t even know you have.”

“What? Stamina?” I scoffed at him; As if I haven’t heard that before. 

“No! Determination!” Rin slapped my back, a grin on his face. “Stamina doesn’t hurt, but if you aren’t determined to get better – You never will!”

“Ah, I guess that’s true.” He stopped walking next to me. “Senpai?”

“Isn’t this where your dorm is?” 

“You’re right!” I bowed to him quickly, blushing from embarrassment. “I was distracted, sorry! And thank you for walking me!”

“Yeah, don’t sweat it.” He held out my bag. As I reached for it, our hands brushed, but it seemed as if I was the only one who noticed it. 

“Sorry for making you go out of your way! And thank you again, senpai!” I held my bag close, feeling a burning sensation on my hand from where we accidentally touched. The feeling was spreading up my arm to my shoulder and across my chest. I could hardly breathe; I couldn’t let that show.

“You okay?” Rin held out his hand, placing it on my head. “You look a little warm, Nitori.”

“I’m okay!” I shouted, jumping away. “Again, thank you again so much! Be safe getting back to your room, senpai! Bye!” I bowed once more before running away. 

“Bye!” He yelled after me. I waved over my shoulder, keeping my eyes forward, ignoring the pounding in my chest.

I lied back down, feeling warm all over, just like last night. After a moment of silence, my phone began to chirp again, ruining the moment. I grabbed my phone and turned off the alarm for the day. After all, there was a lot to look forward to!

I might be able to see Rin again.

\--

I kept an eye out all day. If I even saw a hint of red hair I freaked out. Despite my vigilance, I was unable to find him or catch any sort of information on him. I was a little disappointed but…if I hadn’t seen Rin before yesterday, our paths just probably weren’t meant to cross in our daily lives. Maybe if I tried something different, took a different route to class, ate lunch in a different place… Maybe then…

With a heavy sigh, I made my way towards the pool house. Another surprise – Rin wasn’t part of the swim team. He was amazing, no, more than amazing! Maybe even better than Yamazaki-senpai! I wondered if maybe Rin was just too shy to join a swim team but he didn’t really strike me as that sort of character. 

“You have a message!” I heard my text ringtone from my bag and pulled it out. There was a message from Makoto-senpai; he reminded me of the time and place we were all meeting up, since it was tomorrow. He was always kind enough to do this every time, knowing how busy our lives got and how easily things could slip. 

I texted him back a quick confirmation that I would be going, adding an extra line expressing my excitement. It’ll be so good to see my friends again; they were always my little bit of support I wasn’t able to find elsewhere.

Humming to myself as I got ready for practice, I kept an eye out, hoping maybe Rin will show up. Hoping I had just missed him before, but knowing there was no way I could miss someone like him. I didn’t let my hopes get too high, especially when we gathered for stretches. If I didn’t see him here, he probably wouldn’t be joining the swim team. Maybe I could convince him to join, if I saw him again.

“Nitori,” Sousuke’s voice broke through my thoughts of Rin. 

“Captain!” I jumped, surprised that our stretches were already done. It was just Sousuke and I left.

“Is there something going on? You weren’t counting during stretches like you normally do.” He looked down at me, probably reading right my thoughts.

“Ah, no. I just…” I swallowed. Sousuke was older than me. He would probably know of Rin. 

“Spit it out, Nitori. You need to practice.”

I nodded, thinking of how to best say what I wanted to say. “It’s just… Well, do you know of someone named Rin? He has red hair? I assume he’s in your grade since he’s older than… Captain?” 

Sousuke’s face scrunched up, his eyes clouding over. “Rin?”

“Y…Yes?”

“Where did you hear that name?” He took a step towards me, his hands balling into fists. The clouds in his eyes turned stormy, dangerous.

“I just… Was curious.”

“Where. Did. You. Hear. That. Name.” Sousuke’s words squeezed through his gritted teeth, anger clear in his tone.

“From a classmate!” I lied quickly, not wanting to really tell him. My night with Rin was supposed to be special, just something between the two of us.

“Why?”

“We were talking about swimmers… And they brought him up and how amazing he is.”

“Was.”

“Excuse me, Captain?” I was confused by what he meant, unsure if I heard him correctly.

“How amazing he _was,_ Nitori. Rin passed away a long time ago. When he and I were kids. He was my best friend.” Sousuke turned his head away, brushing his knuckles against his eyes quickly. “Seems as if his legacy still continues on.” A moment passed and Sousuke took a breath before turning back to me. “You have your answer, Nitori. Get to practice. You have a lot of catching up to do if you even want to be good enough to say Rin’s name. Get going.”

I watched Sousuke walk away. He walked away. That I could be sure of. But his words… They stayed in the air in front of me, taunting me. There was no way. Absolutely no way. 

Rin was… Dead?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it took me a long time to actually finish this chapter bc i'm ... lazy i guess? also i work a lot. can't promise when the next update will happen, but i already got half of the next chapter done, more or less. 
> 
> anyway i hope y'all will enjoy vampires just as much as i love vampires (bc i love them so much oh god). please leave comments/reviews/crits whatevs.  
> i didnt do a very good job proofreading this either gomen uou


	3. Nothing Like I Thought It'd Be

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rin has issues.

“You remember Sousuke, right?” I looked down at Haru, whose head rested on my shoulder. 

“Yeah. He didn’t like me.” Haru opened his eyes and sat up. “Why are we talking about him?”

“Well, I think I found us a place to swim. Kou mentioned that he was going to an academy that specializes in swimming and, get this, they have an indoor pool!”

I saw the excitement light up in Haru’s normally dull, blue eyes; it was like lighting a fire under him. “Who cares about him. Just let me swim in that pool. It’s been a while.”

“I know it’s been a while, but we can’t really go out at night, especially by the ocean. Too many tourists, you know. We don’t want to get anyone in trouble with our presence, either,” I stood, stretching upwards. I could feel my spine pop all the way up.

“I get that. Now - Pool?” He looked up, hope exaggerating his features. 

“Yeah, as soon as the sun goes all the way down. Looks like we have another hour or so. If you’re hungry I would suggest you get something to eat. Kou came by earlier and left some food for us.”

“Are you going to eat?” Haru stretched where he was, his voice quiet, reserved. 

“I’m not hungry.” It was a fact. I wasn’t hungry. I didn’t get hungry anymore.

“Rin.” 

“Haru, I know. I’ll eat if I have to, but I’m okay right now,” I grinned down at him. How could I tell him that my throat was so parched it felt like nails scraping up the inside every time I said anything? He didn’t have to know that. 

“Whatever you say, Rin.” I watched as he stood and walked to the fridge. “Please don’t stare at me as I eat.”

“I wasn’t going to!” I looked away, blushing. Haru was always embarrassing me, but at least he never pressured me to do anything. 

\--

“Here it is! How do you like it?” I gestured at the pool house in front of us. It was a full moon, so we had to keep to the shadows because there was still too much light.

“I want to see the pool,” Haru said; I could feel him trembling because he had to hold himself back. 

“And you will. Let’s go,” I crept along the side of the building, hidden by the bushes. 

“This is taking too long,” Haru muttered, pushing against my back. “Hurry, Rin, hurry! The pool shouldn’t have to wait for me!”

“Calm down! We’re here, we’re here!” I looked around, making sure that no one else was near the area. “Do you sense anyone?”

“No one.” Haru took a deep breath before letting it out. “I don’t smell anyone, either. Smells like the last person left over an hour ago. Hurry up.”

“Alright, alright.” We crossed the sidewalk over to the pool house and stood in front of the door. “It’s locked.”

“Like that ever stopped me before.” He pushed me out of the way and grabbed the door knob. I looked at him in horror, trying to stop him. 

“Ha-“ There was a loud, wrenching noise and the door was open. “-ru.” 

“There, it’s not locked. Let’s go inside.” I watched as he slipped into the building. I sighed. 

I walked in after him, expecting to see him in the water already. Instead, he stood right in front of the pool, stripped down to his bathing suit; his hands were extended out in front of him, in diving position. 

“Haru? What’s wrong?” I stepped closer to him. 

“It’s too beautiful,” he whispered. 

“What?” I almost laughed at him until I noticed he was crying. “Why are you-?”

He dove into the water, his body fitting into the water so naturally it was like… Like he was a part of it, like he had never been on land before. I smiled and walked over to the edge of the pool, slipping out of my jeans and shoes. I don’t know how long I stood there, just watching Haru swim from one end to the other and back. 

“This feels so good,” Haru said, finally emerging at half pool. His voice was quiet enough that it didn’t echo. 

“It looks good, too. It’s nice to see you back in your natural habitat,” I laughed, taking off my shirt; Haru swam closer to where I was standing. “It has been a while since you swam, huh?”

“It wouldn’t have been so long if you had let me swim earlier. We live by the ocean, Rin. There was pool right next door. I could hear the water calling out to me.”

I shook my head, laughing at Haru’s expression. He was so stubborn. “Okay, okay. Sure, I know I said we can’t swim in those. But they’re public! They have cameras! This one doesn’t, so we’ll be safe for a while.” Haru opened his mouth to reply, but I cut him off before he did. “Just don’t make too much noise. Don’t wanna attract a security guard.”

“Yeah, I know. I understand, but it’s so frustrating.” He shook his head, sprinkling droplets of water around. “So what? You just gonna stand there all night and stare at me?”

“Huh? No way.” He motioned to me with his finger, a smile playing on his lips. “Okay, fine. I’ll get in, too.” I walked over to the other side, making sure I had enough space between the two of us that he could watch me from where he was. I nodded at him and then dove in. 

Like Haru was always preaching, the water bore its fangs at me and attacked. I fought back, the strain of my muscles familiar, comfortable. I swam to where I remembered Haru being, mentally keeping track of my time. I felt, rather than saw, the wall coming up. Reaching out my hand to touch it, I felt more alive than I had in a long time. 

As I finished the lap, I flew out of the water, flipping my hair out of my face. “How was that?” I laughed and looked for Haru. He was floating in the water, eyes closed. “Eh, Haru! You weren’t even watching!”

“You’re so dramatic, Rin. Keep it quiet,” Haru said, dipping backwards into the water and gliding over to me. No matter how good I was, I always felt a little bit of envy at Haru’s natural affinity with water. Like he was fucking made of it. He resurfaced right in front of me, so close I could see the drops of water collecting on his shoulders, streaming down into his collar bones. 

“Rin. Someone’s here. You don’t smell them?” He whispered, his words ghosting across my face.

I stopped looking at Haru and listened. My sense of smell wasn’t nearly as good as Haru’s or the others, but I could still sense when I wanted to. I heard it. The sound of someone’s camera going off about… twenty times. 

“You hear them.” Haru didn’t ask, but I nodded at him. “But you can’t smell them?”

“Let me try,” I muttered through my teeth, flaring my nostrils. I took a deep breath, pushing out my senses as far as I could. I caught a scent… It was like a field of lilacs, downy feathers, spring water, and the smell after a rainstorm. It was faint but intoxicating for a second, but then… “He’s gone.”

“So you did smell him?” Haru looked at me, his eyes catching mine. I could tell he was surprised.

“Yeah. It was weird. He smelled so…” I paused, thinking of how to describe it. How to describe what it made me feel.

“Delicious?” Haru filled in, a smirk on his face.

“What? No!” I pulled myself out of the pool and looked down at him. “Well, it made me hungry, but… Not like… In a painful way. More like… I don’t know. It was nice, though. He smelled nice.”

“Oh.” Haru dipped back down into the water and swam away. I watched him for a while before laying down, feet still in the water. 

I looked at the ceiling and thought about that scent from before. It was the first time in a long time I was able to detect someone’s smell; the last time was after I… I sighed and looked at my wrist, teeth marks still visible if I looked hard enough. 

After a while – maybe a couple of hours – I felt Haru ghost up next to my feet. “Rin. Sunrise is in two hours. We have to go.” I could tell by his voice that he didn’t want to go anywhere.

“Do you want to leave?” I sat up, laughing. 

“Do I have to answer that?” He narrowed his eyes at me before dunking his head back in the water. 

“Come on!” I stood up out of the pool, waiting for Haru to reappear. “Haru!”

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” he grumbled as he climbed out of the pool, a frown clear on his face. “Goodbye, pool. I’ll be back.” He ran his fingers over the water’s surface. “Don’t miss me too much.”

“Haru,” I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “We still need to get dress. You can masturbate in the shower later, let’s go now.”

Haru glared at me as he stood. “I don’t masturbate in the shower, that’s you.” He walked over and started putting his clothes on.

“W-What?” I scoffed, blushing. “I do not!”

“I have better hearing than you, Rin. And a better sense of smell,” Haru laughed through his nose, slipping his shoes back on. 

“Whatever. Whatever, I’m not discussing this with you,” I grabbed my towel, drying myself off quickly. “At least I won’t be walking around with soggy clothes.”

“I like the feel of water, so I’m okay.”

“Weirdo.”

\--

“There you guys are!” Kou waved at Haru and me, sitting down by the entrance of our place. “I’ve been worried sick! Why don’t either of you carry your phones, God!”

“Sorry,” we said in unison. 

“You will be,” she sighed and stood, carrying a bag in her hands. “Let’s go inside for now. I have to talk to you both.” 

I rushed forward to open the door, putting my hand on Kou’s shoulder. “What’s going on now?” She went in first, followed by Haru and me. I watched as she turned on several lights in the living room before heading to the kitchen. “Kou?”

“It’s nothing bad. I need an escort is all,” she said loudly from the other room.

“For?” I walked into the kitchen, watching as she unpacked food. It smelled like breakfast.

“I need to check something out. Reports of attacks, but no murders so far. I need someone with a strong sense of smell, too.” Kou kept her eyes focused on the box in front of her, hands shaking. “I would ask you, Rin, but… I’m not scared or anything, but I need to make sure I can sense them before they sense me. And I’d ask you first but…”

“I’ll go,” Haru said, pushing passed me. “You know I’m probably your best bet, Kou.”

“Thank you Haru,” she smiled and pushed a box towards him. “I have some breakfast for you both. We’ll be going tonight when the sun goes down so make sure to eat plenty before then.”

“Did we just decide this without my permission?” I could feel myself getting angry. It was irrational, of course. Haru would keep her safer. Haru would be better, but… “I’m your brother!”

“I know, Rin. I know you are.” I could tell she already decided by the look in her eyes. “And you know you’re my first choice for everything, big bro. But this is really important, okay? I need someone with Haru’s talents and you know you can’t do what he can. I love you, Rin, but please. Don’t put us both in danger.”

I gritted my teeth, punching the door frame. I took a deep breath, trying to force myself to calm down. “Fine. Whatever. I’m going to bed. Have a good day at school.” 

“Rin,” Kou called after me, but I had already started walking away. “Rin!” I ignored her and slammed the door to my room. 

It’s not like I didn’t know how much better than me Haru was. It’s not like I couldn’t already see that. I just wish I didn’t have to acknowledge the fact that I couldn’t even keep her safe – that fucking sucks. It just fucking sucks. 

I stripped my clothes off, throwing myself onto my bed in just boxers. I stared at the ceiling, wishing I could be as good as Haru. I knew I could be but… It wouldn’t be worth it. He was only as good as he was because he was either always eating or swimming. I wouldn’t do that. I couldn’t do that. 

“Fuck,” I whispered, feeling tears gather at the corners of my eyes. “Fuck.” I gripped my neck, digging my nails into the skin. It was agony, this dry feeling, this thirst that nothing ever seemed to quench. Every breath was torture, slowly dragging through my throat, scratching its way down. I wasn’t sure how long I cried for - or how long I laid there, strangling myself – but the next thing I saw was a note from Kou on my bedside. 

“Fuck.” My voice came out ragged, every letter of the word tumbling out of my mouth unwillingly. I sat up and snatched the note. “I didn’t even say bye.”

_Rin – You know if I had a choice it’d be you. You know why I have to do this. I love you. Please eat something. Stay safe and alert. Love, Kou._

I shook my head and stood. Kou understood me but she was like everyone else. I wasn’t hungry. I really wasn’t. I opened the first drawer on my bedside – it was filled with similar notes, all from Kou – and put piece of paper inside before closing the drawer. Whatever.

I could amuse myself today. I didn’t need someone with me. 

I walked through my home, the emptiness of the rooms echoing inside of me. I looked at the couch, where Haru usually slept after falling asleep watching TV. It was empty. Whatever. I didn’t need Haru’s company. 

Haru… I grinned to myself. I could go back to Samezuka alone and rub it in his face. That would be fun. Plus I could distract myself by swimming, maybe even improve my times. I was a little rusty from not swimming for so long, after all. 

Yeah. That’s what I’ll do. 

After I made my plans, I headed to the kitchen to make some breakfast and get ready for the night. 

\--

Unlike Haru, I was smart enough to pick a lock. I shook my head, smiling as the door to the pool house swung open with ease. I’d have to show him how to do this one day. Sneaking into the pool was easier alone than with Haru, to say the least. 

I stripped my clothes off slowly, relishing in being alone. It sucked earlier, but now… Now it was calming. I folded my pants and shirt on a bench before kicking my shoes away from the water. I dove in, letting go. I let go of my loneliness, my anger, my mediocrity. I didn’t even feel the tension from last night. I felt everything wash away as I started my laps, timing myself mentally. 

After five laps, I decided to take a break. I just wanted to feel at ease, feel the water surround me so I floated on my back. I could feel the water carrying me, offering its embrace. I stayed that way for about ten minutes, until I smelled something else.

Downy feathers. Lilacs. Spring. 

I dipped down into the water, swimming over to where the entrance was. Even under the water I could feel his presence, something unique to this person. I emerged from the water, finally being able to look at the person who made me feel something I hadn’t felt before.

He was cute. 

“Hey,” I managed to say, casual. 

He was nervous, I could tell. His eyes were the colour of the mid-day sky, a sight I hadn’t seen in so many years. His hair was cut bluntly, falling across his forehead, grey like dark pearls. There was a beauty mark kissed right under his eye, a distinct feature that my eyes were drawn to almost immediately. 

“H-Hello,” he finally replied to me, eyes darting away. 

“What’s your name?” I tried not to smile, but I could feel it coming. This was just funny.

“Nitori… Nitori Aiichirou.”

“I’m Rin.” The smile I tried to hold back found its way to my face. This had to be the same kid from yesterday. “So, you going to come in today or just stand there and be creepy again?”

He jumped at my question, his hair flying as he tried to stammer something out. I knew he would be fun.

\--

After about an hour of swimming together, I could see how serious this kid was. I was about to walk him home and I saw him staring at me, his bag on the bench in front of him. Why not, I thought, grabbing his bag.

“Do you normally take midnight swims?” I asked, heading to the door, swinging his duffel onto my shoulder.

“I can take my own bag, senpai!” He reached for it, but I dodged him, obviously quicker. I heard him sigh, crossing his arms across his chest. We walked in silence for a minute until he answered me. “Ah, not normally. But my times aren’t even close to being good, so I have to practice a lot harder than everyone else to get better. I only started earlier this week and then… I met you, I guess.”

I looked up, thinking about what to say. It was true that he wasn’t the fastest or strongest swimmer I ever met, hell, I knew others who were faster than him who only swam for fun. But… His passion was inspiring. “I know you want more practice but you also need to rest. You can’t get better if you can’t even move. I think you’ve got something you don’t even know you have.”

He laughed at what I said, “What? Stamina?”

“No! Determination!” I patted him on the back, smiling down at him. “Stamina doesn’t hurt, but if you aren’t determined to get better – You never will!” 

“Ah, I guess that’s true,” he muttered. I stopped, watching him walk for a second. He looked like he was thinking about something. Nitori glanced to his side, and jumped when he realized I wasn’t there. “Senpai?”

I smiled, “Isn’t this where your dorm is?” I didn’t have to guess where it was, his scent was all over it. It was so different from anyone else in the past. 

“You’re right! I was distracted, sorry! And thank you for walking me!” He bowed in front of me, his face turning red. 

“Yeah, don’t sweat it,” I said automatically, my head going blank for a second. I held out his bag and held my breath. That’s when I felt it – his hand brushed against mine as he reached for his bag. I felt electricity flow between us, burning into my very core, travelling up into my throat. 

“Sorry for making you go out of your way! And thank you again, senpai!” He jumped back from me, hugging his bag to his chest. I could see how red he was, too. Crap.

I couldn’t help myself. “You okay?” My hand moved on its own, wanting to grab his neck, wanting to feel the blood from his body, but I was able to control it and placed it on his head, instead. His hair was so soft… Like downy feathers. “You look a little warm, Nitori.”

“I’m okay!” He shouted, jumping back again. Oh, no. Did I scare him off? “Again, thank you again so much! Be safe getting back to your room, senpai! Bye!” Nitori bowed once more before running off, leaving a trail of that deliciously intoxicating scent behind.

“Bye!” I yelled after him, feeling dizzy, feeling hungry.

“Fuck.” I gripped my throat. Not now. Not right now. I held my breath; I couldn’t allow myself to breathe in anymore. I couldn’t trust myself. I ran. I ran faster than I ever have before. I had to get away. I had to. 

I didn’t stop until I got home. I threw the door open, assuming I was alone until I looked up, seeing Haru and Kou, both clearly surprised to see me so agitated. Or probably surprised that I would just rush in like this. Or whatever. I couldn’t read their emotions, but I assumed they were surprised.

“What?” I barked out, rushing to the kitchen. 

“Are you okay, big bro?” Kou followed me, looking at me suspiciously.

“Peachy.” I grabbed a cup and filled it with water. “Why do you ask?” I guzzled down the water, praying that would calm the burning. It didn’t. 

“You seem… Not okay.” She said slowly, watching as I filled the cup again. 

“I’m okay.”

“Thirsty?” Haru asked from the door of the kitchen. “Or should I say, hungry?”

I glared at him, feeling the cup give way to my grip. The shards of glass didn’t bother me like they should have. I was so focused on what Haru was saying. 

“You smell like chlorine and…” He took another breath. “And him.”

“Him?” Kou looked between the two of us.

“Did you go swimming tonight?” Haru walked into the kitchen, casually sitting down at the table.

“Maybe.”

“Did you run into anyone?” He looked at me, his blue eyes showing mischief. 

“Rin! Did you… Run into someone?” Kou’s eyes were wide; I saw myself in them. I saw what she thought of me, what I wasn’t - A monster.

“No.”

“Liar.” Haru looked down at the table, a slight smile on his face. “I can smell him lingering on you.”

“Who?” Kou grabbed my arm. That was the last straw.

I pulled myself away from Kou, and stomped to the table. I slammed my hands against the table in front of Haru. “I didn’t do shit tonight but swim. I’m not a _monster._ I do have self-control, unlike others.”

The smile disappeared. “What was his name, Rin?”

“Rin!” Kou shouted from the other side of the room. “What is Haru talking about? Or more like, who is Haru talking about? Did you meet someone? Did something happen? Rin!”

I couldn’t handle it anymore; I ran again. I could hear her shouting after me but I was so mad. So embarrassed. I didn’t do anything. I would never do anything like what she thought I would do.

I wasn’t a monster.

I slowed down, realizing I ran further than I meant to. I looked around when I felt someone’s gaze on me - I saw someone staring at me. He looked familiar. 

“Matsuoka!” He jumped down from his post, a giant grin across his face.

“Mikoshiba.” I greeted, nodding at him. 

“You’ve come to see me?” He put his arm around me, leading me into his home. Home being used as loosely as possible – it was more like a fort made of crap. Seijuurou liked to call himself a free spirit, staying wherever he wanted, never settling down. 

“More like just happen to run into you,” I laughed, sitting down on a cushion he had laying around. “What have you been up to?”

“Oh, not much. Same old, same old. I did happen to run into your sister and Haruka the other day. She was looking as cute as ever,” he laughed, sitting down across from me. “They were on their way to some other part of the city, so I tagged along. It was boring and Haruka barely talked. I don’t know how she put up with it.”

“Well… It was a recon, so quiet is part of it.”

“Whatever! You know I would never let a bastard get close to her!” Mikoshiba grinned, as if that would assure me.

“It’d be better if you weren’t close to her either, captain,” I sighed. ‘Captain’ was an old nickname that we had given him when we were younger. He had taken a bunch of kids under his charge so a lot of people looked up to him, including me. 

“Oh, I disagree.”

Most of the time. I scowled at him, causing him to laugh again.

“Well, that’s neither here nor there, Matsuoka. What’s going on?” He leaned back, grabbing a cup. I could smell what was inside of it. It made me dizzy. I held my breath, hoping to be subtle, but he noticed. “Oh, you’re still celibate, hm? Sorry, I’ll put it away while you’re here.”

“I’m not celibate, I just abstain from blood, thanks. Celibacy is –“

“I know what it is, I was joking.” Mikoshiba put an extra emphasis on the last word. “But you’re avoiding the question: What’s up?”

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “I met a person today. He smelled… Better than anything I’ve ever been around. Haru kept insinuating that I fed off him and I’m afraid that Kou might think that, too. Anyway, I got too hot and ran off before I punched Haru in his face, but now I’m thinking Kou might take that as an admission of guilt. Fuck… I don’t know. I almost did jump on this kid – Nitori – but I wouldn’t do that, you know? I would never.”

He nodded, waiting until I was completely done before saying anything. “I think you should tell Gou-kun everything, from start to finish. Tell her you found someone who makes you feel crazy, who makes you feel like you can’t control yourself – but also makes you feel like you have to. Trust me, she’ll understand.”

“You seem to be speaking from personal experience, Captain,” I said, eyeing him.

“Gou-kun may have already heard something similar from someone else.” He winked before laughing loudly. “Anyway, you have about thirty minutes ‘til sunrise, I suggest you run back home unless you wanna spend the day with me.”

I sighed and stood. “I would rather die,” I laughed. “But thanks. I think you’re right. I should talk to her. I’m sure she’ll understand.”

He nodded, clapping me on my back. “Just don’t do anything crazy, Matsuoka.”

We said our goodbyes and I headed home. I could see the sky starting to turn, but I knew I could make it home before it got dangerous. I felt better, steadier. Less lightheaded. This was something that had never happened before; it was natural to get scared. But now I had to face what I was feeling head on. 

I stood at my front door, knowing Kou was still there. I felt her worrying even through the door. I also felt Haru – a little angry, but also worried.  
I took a breath and opened the door. They both looked at me, Kou rushing over as soon as I stepped in. I held up my hand, stopping either of them from saying anything. 

“We need to talk.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry for all the time jumps and all the fucking angst in this chapter lol  
> also for the lack of nitori, promise next chapter will be better.
> 
> again, minimal editing gomen, uou but leave me comments! crits, reviews, or talk to me about the newest episode (sobs), waterever! 8)


	4. These Nights Never Seem To Go As Planned

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A ghost or... a vampire!?

“How was my time, Nitori? Nitori!” I heard someone yell my name and I looked up.

“Huh?”

“Were you even paying attention? It’s the job of you underclassmen to time us, you know,” Uozumi-senpai sighed, running a hand through his wet hair.

“I’m sorry, senpai! I was just thinking of something else and I’m really sorry!” I bowed, trying to hide my red face. 

“That’s okay. This time pay attention, okay? I’m going again.” He climbed out of the pool and got into ready position. “Tell me when.”

“Ah, right!” I pushed out the rest of my thoughts, focusing on what was going on in front of me. I timed Uozumi and the other guys on my team until it was my turn to get into the water. 

While I swam with all my might, I still fell short of the ideal time that Captain Yamazaki had set out for us. He looked down at me when I made it to the edge of the pool. “Captain?”

“Nitori, you look tired. I think this is what is causing your form to be sloppy, which might be the underlying factor to your crappy time. Get out of the pool. You’ll be our timer for the rest of practice.” Yamazaki-senpai walked away, leaving the stop watch right in front of me. I held back my tears – it was true. I was sloppy and slow. 

But it wasn’t my fault. It was because of what he had said! There was no way Rin could be dead! I touched him! I felt his hand, his skin. There had to be some sort of mistake – Maybe it was a different Rin; it _was_ a pretty common name.

“Nitori!” I jumped, looking around. Right. I was the timer. 

\--

I dragged my feet all the way back to my dorm. Maybe Rin was a ghost? Some sort of illusion of my mind? Perhaps a poltergeist? That might make sense; after all he could move the water, something no regular ghost could do. Yeah, that might… No. I shook my head, touching my hand. I could still feel his skin on mine. It was real. It had to be. No poltergeist could feel that real. I sighed, heading to my room. 

I had to see him tonight. If I saw him tonight that would prove he wasn’t dead, right? Right. I nodded. I would bring some salt with me – if he was truly a ghost that would purify him. If he wasn’t, well… He seemed to be a forgiving person. 

In my room, I looked for the little packets of salt I stored away for whenever I bought American food, since it was always too bland. I unpacked my homework and spread it across my desk, knowing I would have to come back later tonight and work on it. I looked at my English textbook, grimacing at the thought of my assignment for the class, then I threw it on my bed.

I’ll do it later.

\--

Unlike the previous couple of nights, I felt excited about sneaking out to the pool. Walking fast, I made it there in record time. A shiver of anticipation ran down my spine when I saw the door was already opened, just like last night. After taking a deep breath to calm down, I pushed the door opened a little more and slipped inside the pool house.

“Rin-senpai?” I whispered, hearing splashing from the pool. A ghost wouldn’t be able to splash water. I turned the corner, watching as Rin lifted himself out of the pool. I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my face as he looked up at me.

“Hey there, Nitori,” he greeted, standing and stretching. I watched his abdominal and pectoral muscles flex as he lifted his arms. “Like what you see?” He laughed, letting his arms fall.

I blinked a couple of times when I realized what I had been doing. “Oh, I’m sorry! Ah, I just… Um… Sorry.” I couldn’t think of what to say. How do I ask a person if they’re dead when they’re standing right in front of me?

“Nah, don’t be. I was just joking. You going to swim today?” Rin nodded at my bag, pushing his hair out of his face using his goggles. 

“Um, yeah. I actually wanted to show you something. Can you come here?” I twitched. I knew I was a bad liar, but there was no way he knew me well enough to know that. 

“Sure.” He looked at me suspiciously but walked over to me. I dipped my hand into my duffel, wrapping my hand around the bag of salt. I had to move fast if I was gonna surprise him. “What’s up?”

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes before moving, throwing the handful of salt at his face. “I purify you!” I shouted, like my grandmother had once told me. 

“What the fuck, Nitori?” He ducked, but I saw salt fall on him. He didn’t burn or anything. We stared at each other for a while until Rin finally spoke. “What was that?!”

“I…uh,” I looked down at my shoes, trying to find the words. “Someone told me you were dead and I was like, there’s no way. But then I started thinking – What if you were dead and you were just a sad ghost haunting the swimming pool, so I thought, if he is a ghost, salt would help him and he could move on to the next life, but clearly I wasn’t really thinking straight and you’re not a ghost and I’m so sorry.” I bowed, feeling incredibly dense. “I don’t know why I even thought you could possibly be a ghost I’m sorry.”

A moment of silence passed between the two of us until I finally looked up at him. Rin wasn’t looking at me, but at the pool. “Senpai?”

“I’m not a ghost.”

“I-I know. I’m sorry, it was stupid of me-“

“I’m a vampire.”

“Excuse me?” I stood straight, staring at him. He looked embarrassed. “You’re a… What now?”

“A… V-Vampire,” he muttered, scratching the back of his head. 

“Senpai, please don’t tease me. I know it was stupid of me to think you were a ghost but you don’t have to be mean about it.” I felt a little hurt. 

“Nitori,” he looked straight at me, his eyes meeting mine. They were so clear, so honest. “I’m serious.”

I laughed nervously, taking a step back. What if… “Are you crazy? Vampires don’t exist! Quit playing with me!”

“Why would I play with you, Nitori? I’m serious! Here!” He opened his mouth, walking towards me. “Look at my teeth.”

I stared at him; yeah, his teeth were sharp but that didn’t prove anything. “Rin, please. Be serious here; I don’t appreciate you teasing me like this. I-It’s mean.” I blinked, trying to keep the tears at bay. 

“Nitori, I’m not…” He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Kou did say you’d be like this. I’m not sure what to do to convince you…”

“K-Kou-san?” Now I was definitely confused. How did Rin know Kou?

“See, big bro, you should have let me done the talking first!” A familiar voice said from the door. I turned quickly, seeing Kou walk out from the shadows. “Hey, Nitori -kun! Sorry for sneaking up on you!” She smiled and walked passed me. 

“What’s going on?” I watched as she walked up to Rin, hitting his shoulder. “How do you two…” I noticed how similar they looked. 

“Yeah, he’s my big brother. And he’s most definitely a vampire,” she nodded at me, as if it was self-explanatory. 

“I’m still not… I’m sorry? I don’t get the joke…” I looked between the two of them. Why did they keep saying this? Vampires were not real. 

“I’m a vampire… I guess you would say slayer? But not really. More like a vampire moderator, I guess,” Kou laughed. “Let me show you.” She starting digging in her bag. I looked at Rin. He was staring at me. “These are some of my weapons.” I turned my attention back to her, feeling a blush spread across my face.

“Why are you caring a gun, Kou-san?” I asked, wary. I took a step back, no longer feeling like this was a joke. 

“Don’t freak out, Nitori-kun. These weren’t designed to kill humans. The power inside is to incapacitate vampires; we don’t kill if we don’t have to.”

“Nitori, please. We wouldn’t joke like this.” Rin sighed and looked down at his sister. “Is there any other way to show him I’m telling the truth?”

“Hm,” Kou put the gun away before exclaiming. “How about let him feel your non-existent heartbeat! That oughta show him you’re at least serious about being dead!”

“Just because I’m a vampire doesn’t mean I’m dead!”

“Yeah, yeah. I know, big bro. Do you wanna convince Nitori here you’re a vampire just by shouting it though?” She looked back at me, smiling again. “Come here, Nitori. This will prove it!”

I stood, rooted at the spot. What the fuck were these two weirdos going on about? I was definitely not going anywhere near either of them. 

“See, now he’s freaked out!”

“I’m pretty sure you freaked him out with all your ‘I’m a vampire’ crap, Rin! If you had just let me talk first!”

“Whatever, whatever!” Rin huffed at her before turning to me. “I know it’s strange, Nitori. But… If you just listen to here,” he put his hand on his chest, over his heart. “You’ll see I’m telling the truth. I’m a vampire but I promise… I don’t bite.”

I swallowed. There was no way he was telling the truth but… What if he was?

“Okay,” I finally said, my voice barely above a whisper. I wasn’t sure they heard me until Rin starting coming towards me. 

“Be careful, big bro!” Kou muttered, staying still. The only thing moving was Rin. 

Finally, he stood in front of me, his chest bared in front of me. “Go ahead,” he said, his voice soft, reassuring.

But I couldn’t move. I was so scared. 

“It’s okay,” Rin whispered, reaching out to me. I felt his fingers in mine for a second before he guided my hand to his chest. His grip was so gentle but I could feel his hand trembling. At last, my hand connected with his chest and he held it there, his fingers grazing over my skin.

I listened for a second, not trusting my own hearing. I took a deep breath and held it; I didn’t feel anything under my fingers other than my own pulse and his cool, smooth skin. But…

No heartbeat. 

“No way,” I whispered. I pushed our hands away, moving so my ear could rest against his chest. “There’s no way…”

No heartbeat.

I pulled back, looking at up at Rin. Blood rushed through my ears and across my face. “You’re a vampire.”

He nodded, a sad smile on his face. “I’m a vampire.”

The last thing I remembered were his beautiful eyes, so clear, so honest, so full… of something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. I took a deep breath before everything went black. 

\--

I opened my eyes, light streaming through the blinds of my windows. The chirping from my phone was loud and annoying but expected. As I reached to turn it off, everything from last night rushed back to me.

The thing that bothered me the most was that I didn’t remember making it back to my dorm… But what I did remember… I looked at my hand and blushed.  
I had touched Rin-senpai’s chest! 

Pausing for a second, I realized there was something even more important than that.

Rin-senpai was a vampire.

Holy shit. I lied back down and stared at the ceiling. He was a vampire- Vampires exist! Doesn’t that mean everything else I never thought existed exists too? I let this thought wash over me. The world was suddenly scarier than I thought it was five minutes ago. 

“You have a message!” I jumped at the sound of my text notification. 

_Change of plans. We’re meeting at mako’s job place. we need to talk. – kou_

I quickly punched out a reply and tossed my phone back to where it was resting. I couldn’t agree more with what Kou had said. We definitely needed to talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for taking so long on this chapter and for its shortness. i've been feeling really unmotivated and down bc of recent events in free! hahaha but then i thought whatever  
> i'll finish this chapter and post it and move on.
> 
> please accept this chapter! again please leave comments (reviews, crits, whatevs!) ^^


	5. He'd Be Right There, Taking The Blame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rin never knows when to quit.

“No way,” he said, pushing himself towards me, his head resting on my chest. I held my breath, feeling a burning sensation spread throughout my body. Nitori kept whispering to himself, “There’s no way.”

At least he finally believed me. After what felt like forever, he pulled away, staring up at me. I could see the blush across his face; if I had a heartbeat, it would have skipped.

“You’re a vampire.”

Nitori didn’t ask but I felt compelled to answer him anyway. With a nod, I smiled at him; He probably would never want anything to do with me now. “I’m a vampire,” I said in reply, feeling my heart break all over again.

After a second, he took a deep breath, as if he was about to say something, but instead… “Kou! Come here! I think he passed out!”

“I told you it’d freak him out!” Kou shouted, running towards me. 

Nitori lay limply in my arms, his head lolling over to the side. “It was your idea!” I yelled back, hoisting him up. “What do we do?”

Kou sighed, staring at her friend in my arms. “We can just take him back to his room. Let him sleep it off, right?”

“What, and just pretend this is all a dream?”

“No! No,” Kou shook her head, reaching over to grab Nitori’s bag. “Although that _is_ a good idea…” I glared up at her and she rolled her eyes at me, “Don’t worry, I’ll message him later and we’ll talk about it. With Nagisa there, too, since they’re friends. After we talk and all that, you can talk to him afterwards. Just… let us explain everything. I’m sure it’s just a lot to dump on someone, like ‘hey, vampires exist!’, you know. I know I freaked out when I first found out.”

I stared at my sister and rolled my eyes back at her. “I guess you have a point. Let’s go to his room and drop him off. Then you can talk to him or whatever, show him the rational side of what we do. And then let me know so I can talk to him. Lord knows I need to.”

“You don’t need to, you want to, big bro. Don’t lie,” Kou laughed and started walking towards the entrance. “I have your clothes, by the way. Do you want to get changed before or after we drop Nitori off?”

“Before.” I looked down at Nitori; he was breathing deeply, as if he had only fallen asleep. 

“Then put the boy down and get changed, you weirdo.” 

\--

We were walking towards Nitori’s dorm, Kou dug around his bag for his keys. I just stared at the silver-haired boy in my arms; he had snuggled into my arms, latching onto me. 

“You know, when you first told me we needed to talk, I was definitely scared. I thought someone had gotten hurt,” Kou spoke up suddenly; I looked over at her and noticed she was holding a ring of keys in her hand, dangling toys hanging from them. “But I knew you would never do that, big bro. I know you’re good, but I was still scared. More so for you than anyone else. I could forgive you – I’d forgive you for anything – but I knew you wouldn’t forgive yourself.”

“Kou…” I looked back at Nitori. “I was scared, too. I hadn’t felt that much hunger since I got turned, to be honest. It hurt like hell.” I laughed, “I’m glad to have you here.”

“I’m glad you came to me.” Kou smiled, putting her hand on my shoulder. “I’m also glad that it’s him and not anyone else. I like Nitori; He’s a good kid.”

“Oh, you like him, huh?”

“Not like that, big bro! I meant I liked him for you. He’d do you some good, I’m sure. As long as he doesn’t keep passing out!”

“Come on, this way,” I gestured to where I knew the entrance was. “I don’t know. I don’t want to push myself on him. I just want him to accept me as a friend, at least.”

“You’re so gay,” Kou said, making a face at me. “Nitori is really nice, almost as nice as Makoto! He’ll accept you as long as you’re nice back, and sometimes he’ll be nice even when you’re not.”

“I guess…” I walked up the stairs, Kou following behind. “Why did you never introduce me to him?”

“Honestly?”

“Yeah.”

“I didn’t think you were ready, you know, to be around someone who was entirely human.” Her voice was sad and muted. 

“I… I’m around you, aren’t I?” I turned into Nitori’s hallway.

“Yeah but… You’re my brother. I know you’d never hurt me.” She jumped up to walk beside me. “Besides, I bet I don’t smell as tasty as Nitori here does!”

“Shut up!” I frowned at her and sighed. “Anyway, here we are. Let’s get going. I don’t want to keep you up too late, Kou.”

“As if I’m not always up late anyway!” Kou unlocked the door and walked in. “Wow, his room is a little more messy than I thought it’d be…”

“It looks kinda like yours,” I laughed, looking at the bunk bed. I reached up, laying him gently down on the top bunk. His scent was the strongest there.

“Whatever; Sorry I’m not some neat freak like you!” Kou walked back to the door. “Come on. I’ll text him later.”

“I’m coming,” I replied, staying where I was. I stared at him, watching his chest rise and fall. His face was flushed, a hint of pink showing on his cheeks. My heart –not the literal one – swelled and I felt something a little more than just hunger. 

“Rin!”

“Right, yeah. I’m coming.” I turned from him, reluctant to leave. I wanted to stay there, to wake by his side, to talk to him once more. But I knew he needed to be eased into this strange new world first.

\--

“I thought we were going home,” I grumbled, adjusting Kou’s bag over mine. I was a little annoyed only because I had run all the way back from where Nitori had gone to school back to Iwatobi. With Kou on my back. “I thought you were gonna message him.”

“First, I have to do my run first. You know it’s our duty. Second,” she stopped and twirled to face me. “I will message him. Just not right now. Don’t be so pushy, big bro; it’s not cute.”

“Shut up,” I sniffed and kept walking. “Let’s do our stupid runs, then.”

“Awh, are you mad because I said you weren’t cute?” She caught up to me, grabbing hold of my arm. “I was kidding! You’re the cutest! And the manliest! With the best muscles! Do you forgive me now?”

“God, Kou, you’re so annoying,” I turned away, feeling embarrassed. 

“Why would you feel embarrassed, Matsuoka? You have the cutest little sister, after all.” A voice called out from up ahead of us. Three figures were headed our way.

“Shut up, Captain,” I heard Haru say, annoyance in his voice. “We don’t want to hear about your boner for Kou every five goddamned minutes.”

“Oh, yeah, Nanase, because we _so_ want to hear about your thing with that bakery boy, huh?” Mikoshiba retorted, laughing loudly.

“Can you both shut up? Jeeze, if I had known y’all would be so annoying, I would’a left both of y’all behind, my God!” Nagisa whined, walking ahead of the two other boys. “Rin-chan! Gou-chan! Please! Save me from these two annoying bastards!”

“You guys must have been bickering a ton if _Nagisa_ is annoyed with you,” Kou said, laughing. She caught Nagisa in her arms; he was nuzzling her shoulder. 

“You have noooo idea, Gou-chan! I introduced Haru-chan to Mako-chan – because I was picking up some sweet stuff to eat during my run and Mako-chan’s bakery makes the best bread, but when I was on my way, it was already after dark and Haru-chan looked so lonely all by himself, so I invited him with me! And now all he can talk about is Mako-chan! It’s so annoying! It’s cute, but annoying!”

“I thought he already knew Makoto?” I asked, smirking at Haru. “I remember being introduced to him a while ago.”

Nagisa shrugged, letting go of Kou. “Dunno. This is the last area for me to run through, so I can finally ditch the douchebag brigade!” 

She nodded, looking over his shoulder at Mikoshiba and Haru, both of whom looked sheepishly at the ground. “Well, I’ll do my run and they can join me.”

“No need!” Mikoshiba grinned up at her. “We already did your run with Hazuki here!”

“Oh? That’s surprisingly nice,” I commented.

“Well, we didn’t know when you two would be coming back from your hunt,” Haru said, a quiet venom in his words as his eyes met mine.

“Haru! No! He didn’t eat anyone! We just went to talk, oh my gosh!” Kou jumped, shaking her hands at him. “We had a… talk. That’s all.” 

“So the boy is still alive then?” He walked over to stand in front of us.

“Of course he is! He’s my friend, after all!”

“Oh, you got to see Ai-chan?” Nagisa asked. “That’s no fair!”

“Well, he passed out the second he found out, so… Not a whole lot of ‘seeing’ going around, Nagisa,” I answered, walking passed the lot of them. “And now that all of this is cleared up, I’m gonna go now.”

“Big bro, you’re so mean! Wait for me!” Kou shouted after. “Thank you, Nagisa, for doing my run today! I really do appreciate it! You just saved me a couple of hours there!” 

“Of course! You would have done the same for me!” Nagisa was all smiles.

“I know. I owe you a favor, don’t worry,” Kou nodded, a smile on her face. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? We’re gonna have to talk to Nitori about all of this.”

“Exciting! And maybe even Mako-chan!”

“You’re going to meet with Makoto tomorrow?” Haru perked up, looking more alert than before.

“You can come too, Haru-chan! I’m sure Mako-chan will be very happy to see you!” Nagisa jumped on Haru, laughing. 

“Okay, guys! Can we scatter now?” Mikoshiba interrupted, stealing the words right out of my mouth. “Sunrise is in a couple of hours, so I’d like to eat before going to bed, so…” 

“Yeah, right! Sorry!” Nagisa hopped off Haru’s back, waving at all of us. “Bye Gou-chan! Bye Captain-chan! Bye Haru-chan! Behave yourself, Rin-chan!” 

“Hey!” I shouted after him, scowling. 

He giggled, “Bye Rin-chan! See you!” With that, Nagisa skipped off into the night, singing out loud to himself.

“That boy has so much energy, it’s impressive,” Mikoshiba commented, before turning to the rest of us. “Anyway, dinner awaits. Aideu, Gou-kun.” He bent over to smile at her.

“Have a good night,” she nodded and started walking away. I smirked at him. 

“Bye loser,” I called at him, following Kou.

“Later,” he replied, disappearing as he turned away.

“Man, what a long day,” I complained, putting an arm around Kou’s shoulder.

“You’re telling me,” she replied, leaning on me. “I’m just glad to get a couple of hours of sleep, at least. Thank god for Nagisa.”

“I never thought anyone would say those words,” I laughed.

“No, she’s right,” Haru spoke up, walking on Kou’s other side. “Thank god for him.”

I stared at Haru, wide-eyed. “Seriously?”

“I forgot about Makoto,” he said, a small smile on his face. “It’s been years, but I think… He forgot about me.”

“How romantic,” Kou muttered, already half asleep.

“Yeah, I guess,” I replied, lifting her in my arms. “Time to go to sleep, huh?”

“She’s been through a lot, lately,” Haru said quietly, watching as Kou fell asleep. “What with you finally admitting you were gay.”

I bumped Haru’s shoulder, “I admitted that a long time ago. Or did you forget how we were at 16?”

“Yeah, I remember you crying for a week when I dumped you,” he said, laughter in his voice. 

“Please,” I rolled my eyes, “I only cried for three days, thank you.”

“Sure,” he said quietly. 

We walked on with only the sound of our steps and Kou’s gentle breathing breaking the silence of the night. I looked up, scanning the skies for constellations and getting lost in thought. Tomorrow would determine if I had any sort of chance with Nitori, even as a friend. I knew I could trust in Kou; She always took care of everything and I knew there was no way I could ever repay her for that. 

When I told her, yesterday, that I felt the old hunger deep in my throat, she almost started to cry.

“Did you hurt him?” Kou’s eyes were filled with tears and pain, but not anger. 

“I would never. I promise you that, Kou. I could never hurt another person.”

She nodded, turning away. I heard how shaky her breathing was, as if she was trying to hold back her tears. “I know, I’m sorry. You promised. I know you would never…” Kou took a deep breath before turning back to me and holding out her pinkie. 

I wrapped my own pinkie around hers, smiling up at her. “Just like back then.”

“Just like back then,” she repeated before pulling away. “I know you didn’t make that promise to me. I don’t want you to let yourself down. I love you, big bro. You know that.”

“Of course I know. I love you, too.”

“We’re here,” Haru said, pulling me out of my reverie and his keys out of his pocket. “Do you want to eat something with me?”

“No thanks. I’ll just go tuck Kou in and then… Chill in my room.”

He nodded, opening the door and walking into our home. I followed, shutting the door with my foot. Haru had already kicked his shoes off and was headed towards the kitchen. I watched him for a second before going to Kou’s room. I laid her down gently and sat on her bed. 

“Don’t worry…” She muttered, opening one eye to stare at me. 

“Hm? I thought you were sleeping, Kou,” I smiled, patting her head. 

“I was, yeah. I just wanted you to know that I can take care of everything. You don’t have to worry, no matter what happens, you have me. Right, big bro?” She smiled up at me. A moment of silence passed between us, before I nodded.

“Right. Now get some sleep.” I stood.

“Okay. Good night, Rin.” Kou kicked her shoes off and turned over, almost immediately falling asleep. 

“Night,” I replied before turning off the lights and leaving her room. 

I made my way to my room, feeling guilt on my shoulders again. It was like we were children all over again. I had to leave Kou to fix things. I couldn’t do it for her. I couldn’t even do it for myself. I couldn’t be the big brother that she needed. And that sucked. 

I threw myself on my bed and turned on some music. It was all I could do to ignore the overwhelming hunger from being around Nitori and the stress of having to reveal myself to someone without knowing how they would react. 

And the stress of feeling something other than hunger… Something more warm. Something like… Love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gaaaah sorry for how long this took to update and how bad this chapter is... i decided to just write as I go and post it as I finish bc otherwise I take too long agonizing over the editing and that's not something i can do w my job and everything as I am always tired before/after work gomen
> 
> if you do catch mistakes or want to review/critique, by all my means, please do! i would love to hear feedback. anyway, love ya'll! :>


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